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MyJobChart- Helping Kids with Chores

Though Elias is not quite three and doesn’t have formal chores, we still work with him on the importance of cleaning up and helping around the house.

We sing the clean up song as we put away toys, Elias carries his plate to the kitchen after meals, he “helps” with laundry by putting clothes in the wash machine or pulling them out of the dryer (with me) and he puts his clothes in the wash basket.

I was recently introduced to MyJobChart.com by my friend Janice and I can’t wait to use it when Elias is older.

Here are the features that I think makes this tool so cool:
1. It’s FREE! (We all love free, don’t we?)
2. It’s web-based, which is far more engaging for kids today.
3. It’s easy to set-up an account (It took me less than a minute)
4. It is simple for kids.
5. Each child’s account can be set up with chores geared toward them, their age and abilities.
6. Everything is customizable.
7. It’s fun!
8. It teaches kids responsibility, how to save, share, spend, etc.
9. It has email and text notification for parents.

I think the save, share, spend function is my favorite part. Essentially, your child gets points (determined by you) for completing chores. The child then allocates how these points are distributed – they can give to charities, save and/or spend the points (for money, privileges or to earn items through your Amazon account).

You can allocate for any charity that your family supports – like World Vision. What a cool way to involve your child in your family’s commitment to child sponsorship!

We LOVE Amazon and I love this fun integrated feature. We shop online a lot and I can see Elias getting really excited when a package he EARNED comes in the mail.

While I love the Amazon function, I also like the idea of using the system for privileges like TV time, cookies, going to the park, etc – nothing monetary. I’m not sure what direction we would go – maybe a combo!

So far more than 55,000 kids use MyJobChart, and more than 300 are added every day!

If you have kids that are a little older than Elias, how do you engage them in chores? Have you ever considered using a tool like MyJobChart? If you already use MyJobChart.com, share what you like!

Disclosure: This is a financially compensated review, but I only agreed to participate because I think MyJobChart.com seriously rocks. As you can tell, all thoughts are my own.

I have two kids, ages 7 and 9. They both have had standard chores that they aren’t paid for since I can remember…they don’t get paid for making their bed or cleaning their rooms. Instead, we tell them that is part of being part of the household, just like mom and dad have to keep the other rooms clean! To help them earn money, we pay them a commission on doing chores above and beyond those. They can earn money by loading the dishwasher, cleaning up after our dog, taking out the trash and cleaning their bathroom sinks. Each Monday we pay them for the week prior, and then they decide how to divvy up the money into three envelopes, Save, Spend and Give. We help them decide on a goal to save towards, and they each chose their own charity to give to. The spend envelope is used mostly for little toys or candy they can buy whenever we’re out.

I have a wonderful and incredibly smart 4 year old who thinks that the sticker/magnet/stamp with his mothers blood charts are just stupid.

But this! This is so awesome because he gets to be on the computer, he see’s the rewards he can earn and how many points he’s earned. So far he’s earned computer time and is eager to do more chores to get more points.